An owner builder in Tasmania is a person who builds or manages the construction of a home on their own land, acting as the principal contractor instead of engaging a licensed builder. It's a legal path to building your own home, and for the right person with the right skills and time, it can work well. It also carries real obligations — and real risks — that aren't always obvious at the start. Here's an honest guide to what's involved.
What Is an Owner Builder Permit in Tasmania?
Under the Building Act 2016 (Tas), owner builder work is building work carried out by the owner of a property who is not a licensed builder. To legally carry out this work on a residential dwelling in Tasmania, you must hold an Owner Builder Permit issued by the Director of Building Control through Consumer, Building and Occupational Services (CBOS).
The permit is project-specific — it's issued for a particular building project at a particular address. You cannot use one permit across multiple projects, and you cannot use it to carry out work at a property you don't own.
It's important to distinguish the Owner Builder Permit from the building permit (also called a building approval). The Owner Builder Permit establishes that you are authorised to carry out the work as a non-licensed principal. You still need a standard building permit from your local council — with a Certificate of Likely Compliance from a building surveyor — before construction can start. The building permit process is the same for owner builders as for licensed builders; the Owner Builder Permit is an additional step on top of it.
For more on how building permits work in Tasmania — who issues them and what they cover — see our guide to building permits in Tasmania.
When You Do (and Don't) Need a Permit
Not all work requires an Owner Builder Permit. Homeowners can carry out certain minor work on their own property without one:
- A shed, garage, or carport up to 18 m² (or up to 36 m² if prefabricated)
- A porch or veranda up to 9 m²
- A deck up to 1 metre high
For anything beyond these exemptions — including a new dwelling, a major extension, or any medium-risk or permit-required work — an Owner Builder Permit is required if you intend to carry out the work yourself rather than engaging a licensed builder.
Owner Builder Permits are only issued for residential buildings — specifically a detached dwelling (Class 1a) or a conjoined unit. They cannot be issued for commercial buildings, industrial buildings, or multi-storey residential developments.
The Two-Project Limit
Tasmania imposes a strict limit: you can only receive an Owner Builder Permit for two residential projects in any ten-year period. This limit exists to distinguish genuine owner builders from people using the pathway to avoid licensing requirements on a commercial scale.
Each project requires its own permit application. The two projects can be two entirely new dwellings, or they can be a new dwelling and a major renovation on a different property — but each must be separately permitted, and the ten-year clock starts from the date of the first permit.
How to Apply
Applications for an Owner Builder Permit are made through CBOS. You can lodge the completed application form at any Service Tasmania shop, by email to cbos.info@justice.tas.gov.au, or by post to Consumer, Building and Occupational Services, PO Box 56, Rosny Park TAS 7018. Current fee information is maintained on the CBOS website (cbos.tas.gov.au) — fees are updated annually on 1 July.
The application will ask for details of the project, the property, and your qualifications or experience. CBOS assesses applications against the requirements of the Building Act 2016. Once a permit is issued, you can proceed with your building permit application to your local council.
Insurance Requirements
Owner builders must hold public and construction liability insurance of no less than five million dollars for the project. This is the same requirement that applies to licensed builders. The insurance must be in place before work commences on site.
What's different for owner builders is the absence of statutory warranty insurance (Home Indemnity Insurance). In Tasmania, licensed builders are required to hold warranty insurance on residential work above a certain threshold — this insures the owner against defects or incomplete work if the builder dies, disappears, or becomes insolvent. Owner builders are not covered by this scheme for the work they carry out themselves. This matters when it comes to resale.
Your Responsibilities as Owner Builder
As an owner builder, you take on the legal responsibilities of a licensed builder for the duration of the project. This includes:
- Work Health and Safety: You are the principal contractor for WHS purposes. This means establishing a safe workplace, maintaining a Site Safety Management Plan, and ensuring all subcontractors comply with WHS obligations. Failure to do so carries serious legal and financial consequences.
- Compliance with the NCC: The home must be built to the National Construction Code. A building surveyor will issue the Certificate of Likely Compliance before the building permit is issued, and they will carry out mandatory inspections during construction. If non-compliant work is identified during inspection, it must be rectified — sometimes at considerable cost.
- Subcontractor management: You must ensure every trade engaged on the project holds the relevant licence or registration. In Tasmania, most building trades — electricians, plumbers, gas fitters, building surveyors — require licensed work to be carried out by a person holding a CBOS licence. Engaging an unlicensed trade is a legal offence and can affect your ability to obtain occupancy certification.
- Project management: Coordinating subcontractors, sequencing trades, managing materials delivery, and keeping the project on programme is a skilled full-time job. Underestimating this is one of the most common ways owner builder projects blow out in time and cost.
Owner Builder: Honest Cost Realities
The expected saving from owner building is the builder's margin — typically 15–25% of the build cost. On a $600,000 build, that's $90,000–$150,000 on paper. In practice, owner builder projects commonly spend more on variations, rework, and subcontractor delays than licensed builder projects do — because experienced builders have established relationships, purchasing power, and sequencing knowledge that new owner builders have to develop on the job.
The saving is real if you have relevant construction or project management experience, can devote the time the project requires, and have a realistic plan for managing trades. It's much harder to achieve if building is genuinely new territory — and the time cost is significant regardless. For current build cost benchmarks to put those numbers in context, see our cost to build a house in Tasmania guide.
The Resale Consideration
When you sell an owner-built home within six years of the building permit being issued, you must disclose that it was owner-built. Prospective buyers will know that statutory warranty insurance doesn't apply to the work you carried out yourself. This can affect the pool of buyers willing to make an unconditional offer, and in some cases the price achievable — particularly if the build has any quality issues or if the buyer's lender requires warranty insurance.
For a home you intend to live in long-term, this may be a minor consideration. For a home you might sell within a few years, it's worth factoring into your planning.
Owner Builder vs Licensed Builder: The Honest Trade-Off
| Factor | Owner Builder | Licensed Builder |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Potential saving of builder's margin (15–25%), but cost overruns are common | Fixed-price contract protects against cost blowout; builder absorbs most margin risk |
| Time | Typically longer — project management is a full-time job alongside daily life | Experienced builder with established trades typically delivers faster programme |
| Warranty | No statutory warranty insurance on owner-built work; disclosure required on resale | Statutory warranty insurance applies; transferable to future owners within 6 years |
| Risk | WHS, NCC compliance, and subcontractor management risk sits with you | Experienced builder carries WHS/compliance risk and has established QA processes |
| Best suited to | People with trades or PM experience, available time, and a manageable project scope | Most people building a new home, particularly first-time builders |
How Davies Can Help
Davies Design & Construction has been building custom homes in northern and north-west Tasmania since 2009. We work with clients from the earliest feasibility conversation — understanding the site, the planning constraints, and what a realistic project will cost — before a design brief is set.
For people considering the owner builder path, we're happy to have an honest conversation about what's involved and whether it makes sense for your project and circumstances. Building should go smoothly — and the best way to make that happen is to understand exactly what you're taking on before you start.
If you decide a licensed builder is the right path, we'd love to be in the conversation. We offer a rough feasibility assessment within a couple of days, and a detailed budget estimate within about a week once we have enough information about the project.
Get in touch with the Davies team to start the conversation — no commitment, just a clear-eyed look at what your project will take.
About the Author
Luke Davies
Luke is the founder of Davies Design & Construction and author of Dream Home. He writes about home design philosophy, lean construction, and building businesses that put people first.
0 Comments
Related Articles
